Jardins d’Été pays homage to French Impressionism, especially the late works of Claude Monet. The series investigates the ways in which nature is observed and synthesized, which in the 19th century served as a point of departure toward total abstraction. Quayola thus recreates conditions similar to what would have been observed by the French Impressionist landscape painter to achieve new modes of visual representation. While the art historical term “impressionism” refers to the evocative quality of loosely painting a scene undergoing environmental changes, here Quayola engages with an extensive technological apparatus to precisely capture subtle nuances beyond human perception. Employing ultra-high-definition cameras and custom computer software, natural landscapes are seen through the “eye” of a machine that serves as a counterpoint to the subjective human optical organ.
